“The biggest immediate impact from a negative standpoint would be the small to midsize growing firms who are competing with talented college and grad school graduates who are foreign students where the competition for these skills are global," said Klowden. "These people would not be able to be hired and would end up going to their home countries.”

But Rita Sostrin, an L.A.-based immigration attorney, says there just aren’t enough U.S. workers with the skills in science, technology, engineering and math that companies need.

“It’s the high-tech industries and the sciences that rely on H-1B visas to continue driving the economy forward," said Sostrin. She points out that H-1B workers need a bachelor's degree or higher to qualify.

Trump’s exact plans for the program aren't clear. Sostrin hopes he will reconsider.

“I’m hoping this executive order will not go through or will be amended to the point where we can make sense of it."